As we enter into the holiday season and the fall/winter surge of COVID-19 cases, we have been coming up with alternative ways to see our friends, family and neighbors. Some suggested ways to get together have included holding small gatherings outside while practicing social distancing and wearing masks. Some of us may even be planning for holiday dinners to be held outside this year with our friends, families and neighbors.
For those of us who experience all four seasons, holding holiday dinners outside may pose a challenge due to the weather. Some suggestions to battle the cold weather is to purchase outdoor fire pits/fireplaces, heaters and gazebos, canopies or tents. For multi-family properties, such as cooperatives, this poses a challenge as some cooperative’s House Rules and Regulations may prohibit items such as outdoor fire pits/fireplaces and heaters along with other outdoor items that may pose a risk to a member’s dwelling unit or to the cooperative premises itself. It is vital that members remember to refer to their House Rules and Regulations prior to purchasing outdoor fire pits/fireplaces, heaters and gazebos, canopies or tents as such items may be prohibited from being used in a member’s patio area.
If a Board of Directors is unsure whether such items are permitted, you must contact your cooperative attorney for assistance. An experienced cooperative attorney will be able to review the House Rules and Regulations along with the Bylaws and Occupancy Agreement to determine whether such items are permitted. Of course, if a Board of Directors wishes to expressly permit or expressly prohibit the membership to use outdoor fire pits/fireplaces, heaters and gazebos, canopies or tents then the Board of Directors must reach out to its cooperative attorney to amend the House Rules and Regulations.
While it may seem easy to grant such use of outdoor fire pits/fireplaces and heaters with an amendment to the House Rules and Regulations the municipality where the cooperative is located may prohibit such use. An experienced cooperative attorney will be able to understand and interpret the municipality’s code of ordinances where the cooperative is located in order to determine whether such items are prohibited. Even if such use is permitted, most municipalities place regulations on such use, specifically for outdoor fire pits/fireplaces and heaters.
With respect to outdoor fire pits/fireplaces, a municipality’s code of ordinances may specifically provide that only hardwood logs can be burned in an approved metal/masonry container with a metal covering device for fire pits. Additionally, the code may also specifically provide that the firepit/fireplace itself be manufactured as an outdoor fire pit/fireplace and must be in good condition and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, which must be used at all times under adult supervision. Most importantly, due to safety, said code will also place restrictions as to how far the fire pit/fireplace must be from buildings and prohibit the use of burning in a hole or pit installed in the ground.
For heaters, a municipality’s code of ordinances may also restrict the use for such items outdoors. The code may provide that the heater must be installed and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s installation instructions. Additionally, you may also find that the heater must also be placed within so many feet from buildings and be used under adult supervision.
A cooperative Board of Directors who is amending its House Rules and Regulations to permit for outdoor fire pits/fireplaces and heaters must ensure that they understand the safety restrictions that municipalities place on outdoor fire pits/fireplaces and heaters. A cooperative’s House Rules and Regulations cannot be less restrictive that the municipality’s code of ordinances where the cooperative is located. As always, contact your cooperative attorney prior to granting such use of outdoor items so that a thorough review of the local code of ordinances can be performed in order to amend the House Rules and Regulations to permit such use.
With gazebos, canopies or tents comes the concern over anchoring. Generally, gazebos and canopies are anchored into the patio and not to the building. Tents on the other hand are anchored into the ground. The Board of Directors must work with its cooperative attorney to decide on the specific details of the permitted specifications, installation, use, and removal of the gazebos, canopies and tents. Additionally, the Board of Directors must also keep in mind that it must provide for provisions for the member’s responsibility for maintenance, replacement and repair of the gazebos, canopies and tents along with member being financially responsible for the installation, maintenance, use and removal of the gazebos, canopies or tents.
It is not lost on anyone that this holiday season is going to look different for all of us as a result of COVID-19, especially with the fall/winter surge of COVID-19 cases. We are all trying to come up with alternative ways to gather with our friends, neighbors and families this holiday season. While it may seem like a quick fix to use outdoor fire pits/fireplaces, heaters, gazebos, canopies or tents, said quick fix may not be feasible for cooperatives as a cooperative’s House Rules and Regulations may expressly prohibit said use or may even be silent on said use. It is vital that a Board of Directors immediately contact its cooperative attorney for assistance when it receives a request for such use from a member or if there is a desire to amend the House Rules and Regulations to either expressly permit or prohibit such use. An experienced cooperative attorney will be able to assist the Board of Directors in every respect for these matters.